System and method of transmission and reception of progressive content with isolated fields for conversion to interlaced display

ABSTRACT

Systems and methods of coding progressive content with isolated fields for conversion to interlaced display are provided. Some systems and methods may find use in, for example, digital video compression systems and methods. Film material may be encoded as video material with an intended field polarity and an explicit 3:2 pull-down operation for interlaced display (e.g., a 30-frames-per-second display).

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/349,634, entitled “System and Method of Transmission and Reception ofProgressive Content With Isolated Fields for Conversion to InterlacedDisplay,” filed on Jan. 22, 2003, which makes reference to, claimspriority to and claims benefit from U.S. Provisional Patent ApplicationSer. No. 60/351,182, entitled “Method for Enabling Transmission andDisplay of Encoded Compressed Film Material in a Video Bit Stream” andfiled on Jan. 22, 2002; U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No.60/384,234, entitled “Method for Enabling Transmission and Display ofEncoded Compressed Film Material in a Video Bitstream” and filed on May30, 2002; and U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 60/441,072,entitled “Method for Enabling Transmission and Display of EncodedCompressed Film Material in a Video Bit Stream” and filed on Jan. 17,2003.

This application is related to U.S. patent application Ser. No. ______,entitled “System and Method of Transmission and Reception of ProgressiveContent With Isolated Fields for Conversion to Interlaced Display”,filed concurrently herewith, having attorney docket number 14249US02.

INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

The above-identified United States patent applications are herebyincorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

In countries that use 525-line interlaced display systems such as, forexample, the United States and Canada, television video signals aresampled and transmitted at approximately 59.94 fields per second (fps).For such countries, digital television video streams are generallyencoded and transmitted by using a particular Moving Pictures ExpertsGroup (MPEG) standard (e.g., MPEG-2 Video) at approximately 29.97 framesper second (FPS).

Hereinafter, an integral value of fps or an integral value of FPS may bean approximation including, within its scope, a range of equivalentvalues. Thus, for example, the expression 30 FPS may be used to refer torates such as, for example, approximately 29.97 FPS or approximately 30FPS. Furthermore, the expression 24 FPS may be used to refer to ratessuch as, for example, approximately 23.976 FPS or approximately 24 FPS.Similarly, the expression 60 fps may be used to refer to rates such as,for example, approximately 59.94 fps or approximately 60 fps.

Film material produced at 24 FPS is routinely converted to 60 fps inmany applications. Broadcast networks usually encode and transmit moviesthat were originally filmed at 24 FPS and not at 60 fps. However, at thereceiver, the decoded video at 24 FPS is often converted to 60 fps forinterlaced display. A conventional process for converting 24 FPS to 60fps sampling includes the Telecine Process (named after the originaltype of machine used to perform the conversion from film to video). Itis also known as the 3:2 pull-down process. The Telecine Process insertsrepeated fields derived from the original film frames in such a way that5 video frames (i.e., 10 fields) are produced for every 4 original filmframes. FIG. 1 illustrates one example of a process 12 that performs a3:2 pull-down. The original film sequence 10 filmed at 24 FPS isconverted to a video sequence 14 at 30 FPS, or equivalently 60 fps. Amechanism of handling 3:2 pull-down for film material in digital videosystems is usually referred as film mode.

The Telecine Process or 3:2 pull-down process is supported in the MPEG-2Video compression standard. When using the MPEG-2 Video standard withthe film mode, the frame rate encoded in the sequence header is 30 FPSfor interlaced display, even though the video is actually coded as a 24FPS film sequence. The encoder also conveys, to the decoder, properdisplay timing based on the frame rate of 30 FPS. The flagstop_field_first and repeat_first_field in the picture coding extensionheader are used for indicating how a picture should be displayed. Thesetwo flags are mandated as MPEG-2 syntax elements that are carried allthe time and are followed by decoder. However, such inflexibility maynot be desirable, particularly, when the type of display device can varyfrom, for example, an interlaced television to a progressive monitor.Furthermore, the encoder does not know the type of display employed atthe decoder end.

In MPEG-2 Video elementary streams, the flags top_field_first andrepeat_first_field are used to indicate the current film state. Fourfilm states A, B, C and D are illustrated in FIG. 1. The four possiblefilm mode states are generally repeated in the same order every fourpictures. FIG. 2 illustrates the mapping between the film states andthese 3:2 pull-down flags in MPEG-2 Video.

In MPEG-2, the decoder generally follows the top_field_first andrepeat_first_field flags to display film state B and D frames for threefield times to re-construct the 3:2 pull-down pattern. The decoderre-displays the first field to create the third field. This is because,in the 3:2 pull-down algorithm, the first field is repeated every otherpicture to convert film material at 24 FPS to video mode at 30 FPS. Filmstate A and C pictures are displayed for only two field times. A filmmode sequence of four pictures will therefore be displayed as a total of10 field times. In this way, the decoded video is displayed at thecorrect video picture rate of 30 FPS

In MPEG-2, the flags top_field_first and repeat_first_field along withthe frame rate can also be applied to derive Decoding Time Stamps (DTS)and Presentation Time Stamps (PTS) for some pictures. The flags (i.e.,top_field_first and repeat_first_field) are used to achieve propertiming for decoding and displaying the coded 24 FPS film material togenerate output video at 30 FPS.

However, for compressed video formats without these flags (or similarflags), the 3:2 pull-down process or the film mode is supported in adifferent manner and not supported by, for example, new videocompression standards (e.g., MPEG-4 Advanced Video Coding (AVC)) as wellas with some of the existing video transport standards (e.g., MPEG-2Systems).

In formats other than those following the MPEG-2 Systems standard (i.e.,ISO/IEC 13818-1), decoding time and presentation time may be indicatedvia syntax elements that differ from DTS specifications and PTSspecifications found in MPEG-2 Systems. As used herein, the terms DTSand PTS may be interpreted as including, within their meaning, decodingtime or buffer removal time and presentation time or display time,respectively, regardless of how they may be encoded in the bitstream.

Further limitations and disadvantages of conventional and traditionalapproaches will become apparent to one of ordinary skill in the artthrough comparison of such systems with some aspects of the presentinvention as set forth in the remainder of the present application withreference to the drawings.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Some aspects of the present invention may relate to a system and amethod of encoding progressive content with isolated fields forconversion to interlaced display. Some applications within the scope ofthe present invention may find use, for example, in digital videocompression systems and methods.

In one embodiment, the present invention may provide an encoder that isadapted to encode film material as video with an intended field polarityand an explicit 3:2 pull-down operation for interlaced display (e.g., a30 FPS display). An isolated field with the intended field polarity(e.g., top field) may be coded between two frames to achieve 3:2pull-down for coding the film material. The polarities of all fields ofall frames may be inferred from the field polarities of the isolatedfields since the field polarities alternate for normal interlaceddisplay of video. Frames do not have to indicate field polarities;however, they may do so in video coding standards that support theindication of field polarity of frames. The field polarities of theframes may be implied by the polarities of the isolated fields.

In another embodiment, unlike in MPEG-2 Video, for example, the presentinvention may provide that DTS and PTS may be generated for both codedframes and fields in the encoder. The encoder may insert isolated fieldsas appropriate to achieve the desired decoding and display timing, forexample, according to the result of a 3:2 pull-down process. In caseswhere the input to the encoder is the result of a 3:2 pull-down process,the encoder may encode progressive frames with interspersed isolatedfields in a manner similar to the content that is received by theencoder. In the decoder, for coded pictures (e.g., frame pictures orfield pictures) that do not have associated DTS and PTS in the stream,their decoding and presentation times may be derived from the decodingand presentation times of previous pictures (e.g., frame pictures orfield pictures) by using the frame rate or the field rate indicated inthe stream. In one example, the decoding and presentation times may bederived from the decoding and presentation times of previous pictures byusing only the frame or the field rate indicated in the stream.

In yet another embodiment, unlike the MPEG-2 film mode flags, forexample, the present invention may provide that its use does notcomplicate the video buffer model in the Hypothetical Reference decoderportion of the video standard, since the frame rate and buffer removaltimes are consistent with or without the use of film mode encoding.

These and other features and advantages of the present invention may beappreciated from a review of the following detailed description of thepresent invention, along with the accompanying figures in which likereference numerals refer to like parts throughout.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of a 3:2 Pull Down process.

FIG. 2 illustrates an embodiment of a mapping between film mode statesand 3:2 pull-down flags.

FIG. 3 illustrates an embodiment of a pattern of frames and fieldsaccording to the present invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates an embodiment of a system that facilitates thedisplay of video according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 illustrates an embodiment of a system that facilitates thedisplay of video according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart showing an embodiment of a process thatfacilitates the display of video according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 illustrates a flowchart showing an embodiment of a decodingprocess according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Some aspects of the present invention may relate to a system and amethod that encodes progressive content with isolated fields forconversion to interlaced display. Some applications within the scope ofthe present invention may find use in, for example, digital videocompression systems and methods. Some embodiments according to thepresent invention may be suitable for use in and compatible with someMPEG standards (e.g., an MPEG-4 AVC standard as described in, forexample, document JVT-E146d37ncm.doc, entitled “Joint VideoSpecification (ITU-T Rec. H.264|ISO/IEC 14496-10 AVC)”, incorporatedherein by reference in its entirety).

Some aspects of the present invention may relate to providing a systemand a method that realizes a 3:2 pull-down process or a film mode for atleast some video compression systems and methods. Some embodimentsaccording to the present invention may be suitable for use in andcompatible with some MPEG standards (e.g., MPEG-4 AVC) including someexisting video transport standards (e.g., MPEG-2 Systems).

FIGS. 4 and 5 show respective block diagrams illustrating embodiments ofsystems that facilitate the display of video according to the presentinvention. Referring to FIG. 4, a transmitter 40 may be coupled to areceiver 50 via a network 60. The receiver 50 may, in turn, be coupledto a display 90. The transmitter 40 may include, for example, an encoder70. The receiver 50 may include, for example, a decoder 80. FIG. 5 showsanother embodiment for the receiver 50 including, for example, atransport processor 100 and a multimedia processor 110. In oneembodiment, the transport processor 100 may be coupled to the network 60and to the multimedia processor 110. The multimedia processor 110 may becoupled to the display 90 and may include, for example, the decoder 80.Although illustrated as part of the multimedia processor 110, thedecoder 80 may be separate from the multimedia processor 110.Furthermore, although illustrated as separate components, the transportprocessor 100 and multimedia processor 110 may be integrated at least inpart. In one embodiment, the transport processor 100 and the multimediaprocessor 110 form a single integrated chip. The present inventioncontemplates other degrees of integration and separation.

FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart showing an embodiment of a process thatfacilitates the display of video according to the present invention. Inoperation, in step 120, the encoder 70 of the transmitter 40 may encode,for example, film material as video material with an intended fieldpolarity and with an explicit 3:2 pull-down operation for interlaceddisplay via the display 90. In step 130, the encoder 70 may insert oneor more isolated fields with the intended field polarity (e.g., a topfield or a bottom field) between two frames to achieve 3:2 pull-down forcoding the film material. The field polarities of the fields in all ofthe frames may be inferred from the field polarities of the isolatedfields. In one embodiment, this may be because, for example, the fieldpolarities alternate for normal interlaced video display. In step 140,the bitstream (e.g., a video bitstream) may be transmitted over anetwork (e.g., cable television, satellite, digital television,broadcast, Ethernet, Internet, wireless network, etc.) to the receiver50. In step 150, the transport processor 100 may parse the receivedbitstream and may output the parsed bitstream to the multimediaprocessor 110. In step 160, the multimedia processor 110, which mayinclude, for example, the decoder 80, may extract or may determinetiming information and may decode the bitstream. If not present, thetiming information for a particular frame or a particular field may bedetermined from the timing information from one or more previous framesor one or more previous fields. The multimedia processor 110 may use aframe rate or field rate indicated in the bitstream to determine timinginformation for a particular frame or a particular field. In step 170,the decoded bitstream may then be displayed on the display 90 using, forexample, the extracted or determined timing information. For example,the multimedia processor 110 may use the time stamp information indetermining the timing for displaying pictures (e.g., frame pictures,field pictures, etc.).

Compressed digital video may include, for example, coded frames andcoded fields. According to the MPEG-2 Video standard (i.e., ISO13818-2), coded fields occur in pairs (i.e., an isolated field is notallowed between two frames). Furthermore, each picture of a film modesequence in MPEG-2 is always coded as a frame. In one embodiment, theisolated fields may be used to code some pictures in film mode. Inanother embodiment, the present invention may be used with the MPEG-4AVC standard. An isolated field with the indicated field polarity (e.g.,top field or bottom field) may be coded between, for example, two framesto achieve the 3:2 pull-down process for coding film material. Theframes may or may not have the field order indicated explicitly. Theorder of the fields of the frames may be implied, for example, by thepolarity of the isolated fields.

The film mode states correspond, for example, to frame types A, B, C andD of the 3:2 pull-down process as illustrated in FIGS. 1 and 2. Anembodiment of the operation of an encoder according to the presentinvention is illustrated in FIG. 3. For film mode state A, a picture 20is coded as a frame whose top field precedes its bottom field in time.For film mode state B, a first picture 22 is coded as a frame whose topfield precedes its bottom field in time followed by a second picture 24coded as a field. The coded field in the second picture 24 representsthe top field of the film mode state B. In one embodiment, it ispredicted from the top field of the preceding frame picture in state B.For film mode state C, a picture 26 is coded as a frame whose bottomfield precedes its top field in time. For film mode state D, a firstpicture 28 is coded as a frame whose bottom field precedes its top fieldin time followed by a second picture 30 coded as a field. This codedfield represents the bottom field of the film mode state D. In oneembodiment, it is predicted from the bottom field of the preceding framepicture in state D.

Some embodiments of encoding and decoding methods for film modeaccording to the present invention may be well suited for supportinginterlaced display. FIG. 7 shows a flowchart illustrating an embodimentof a decoding process according to the present invention. In query 180,the decoder determines whether or not the decoder selects 3:2 pull-downcontent (e.g., 30 FPS). The encoder may explicitly encode a 24 FPS filmsequence into a 30 FPS (or, equivalently, 60 fields per second) videosequence for transmission. If the decoder chooses to use 3:2 pull-downformat (e.g., the decoder may be coupled to an interlaced display with aformat and a frame rate compatible with those indicated in thebitstream) then, in step 190, the encoded video sequence may be directlydecoded and presented on the display without using the flags such as,for example, top_field_first and repeat_first_field as in MPEG-2 Video.The interlaced format of the content is displayed in step 200. If thedecoder chooses not to use the 3:2 pull-down format then, in step 210,the decoder detects and removes the isolated fields. The decoder maychoose not to use the 3:2 pull-down format if, for example, the decoderis coupled to a progressive display, or if a display has a differentformat or frame rate from those indicated in the bitstream. Suchisolated fields may be detected by the decoder since, for example, thefield is isolated and the field is predicted from a previous frame. Instep 220, the coded frames may then be displayed in a progressive formator the content may be converted to match the display which may be, forexample, interlaced with a different size or a frame rate from the rateresulting from the use of the isolated fields.

Even when a different video encoding specification from MPEG-2 is usedto compress the video, it may still be desirable to use the MPEG-2Systems specification (e.g., Transport Stream) to transmit the encodedbit stream, due to the wide use of equipment implementing thisspecification and its proven performance and reliability. It may also bedesirable to maintain current investments in the transmission anddelivery infrastructure.

In accordance with the present invention, film material may be encodedwith the indicated frame rate being the interlaced display frame rate(e.g., 30 FPS) without using flags such as, for example, top_field_firstand repeat_first_field. The time-stamping process for the decoding timestamp (DTS) and the presentation time stamp (PTS) in MPEG-2 Systems maybe slightly different than that for MPEG-2 Video. For MPEG-2 Video, DTSand PTS are typically generated for coded frames in the encoder byexamining the corresponding film states. In an MPEG-2 decoder whenencountering frames that do not have DTS and PTS coded, the decoding andpresentation times generally are derived from the decoding andpresentation times of previous frames in combination with the frame rateand the repeat_first_field flag. However, unlike MPEG-2 Video, in someembodiments according to the present invention, DTS and PTS may begenerated for coded pictures in the encoder without knowing the filmmode states of the pictures. Also, unlike MPEG-2 Video, in someembodiments according to the present invention, DTS and PTS may begenerated for either coded frame pictures or field pictures in which thefield picture may be isolated (e.g., not necessarily in pairs). When adecoder encounters a picture without DTS and PTS coded in the stream,the decoder can infer the correct decoding and presentation times forthat picture from the decoding and presentation times of previouspictures (e.g., frame pictures or field pictures) in combination withonly using frame rate or field rate, without using a repeat_first_fieldflag or the equivalent.

Unlike the MPEG-2 film mode flags, some embodiments according to thepresent invention do not complicate the video buffer model in theHypothetical Reference Decoder portion of the video standard, since theframe rate and buffer removal times are consistent with or without theuse of a film mode.

In some embodiments, the present invention may not indicate any fieldpolarity of the frames when the isolated fields are included. The fieldpolarity of all of the frames may be determined by the polarities of theisolated fields.

While the present invention has been described with reference to certainembodiments, it will be understood by those skilled in the art thatvarious changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted withoutdeparting from the scope of the present invention. In addition, manymodifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material tothe teachings of the present invention without departing from its scope.Therefore, it is intended that the present invention not be limited tothe particular embodiment disclosed, but that the present invention willinclude all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims.

1-27. (canceled)
 28. A video encoder circuit comprising: circuitryoperable to encode film material as a video with a field polarity and a3:2 pull-down operation for an interlaced display format; and whereinthe circuitry is operable to insert an encoded isolated field with thefield polarity.
 29. The video encoder of claim 28, wherein the circuitryis operable to insert the encoded isolated field between a first frameand a second frame to achieve 3:2 pull-down for coding the filmmaterial.
 30. The video encoder of claim 28, wherein the circuitry isoperable to receive the film material, the received film materialresulting from a 3:2 pull-down process.
 31. The video encoder of claim28, wherein the circuitry is operable to encode the film material into abitstream comprising fields of strictly alternating polarity.
 32. Thevideo encoder of claim 28, wherein the circuitry comprises a transmitteroperable to transmit the encoded film material over a network.
 33. Thevideo encoder of claim 28, wherein the circuitry is operable to generatea decoding time stamp (DTS) or a presentation time stamp (PTS) for aparticular picture without knowledge of a film mode state of theparticular picture.
 34. The video encoder of claim 28, wherein thecircuitry is operable to generate a DTS or a PTS for the insertedencoded isolated field.
 35. The video encoder of claim 28, wherein thecircuitry is operable to generate a DTS and a PTS for both coded framesand inserted encoded isolated fields.
 36. The video encoder of claim 28,wherein the circuitry is operable to indicate polarity for insertedencoded isolated fields but not for encoded frames.
 37. A method forencoding video information, the method comprising: encoding a sourcematerial as a video material with a field polarity and a 3:2 pull-downoperation for an interlaced display format; and wherein the encodingcomprises inserting an encoded isolated field with the field polarity.38. The method of claim 37, wherein inserting an encoded isolated fieldwith the field polarity comprises inserting the encoded isolated fieldbetween a first frame and a second frame to achieve 3:2 pull-down forcoding the film material.
 39. The method of claim 37, further comprisingreceiving the film material, the received film material resulting from a3:2 pull-down process.
 40. The method of claim 37, wherein the encodingcomprises encoding the film material into a bitstream comprising fieldsof strictly alternating polarity.
 41. The method of claim 37, furthercomprising transmitting the encoded film material over a network. 42.The method of claim 37, wherein the encoding comprises generating adecoding time stamp (DTS) or a presentation time stamp (PTS) for aparticular picture without knowledge of a film mode state of theparticular picture.
 43. The method of claim 37, wherein the encodingcomprises generating a DTS or a PTS for the inserted encoded isolatedfield.
 44. The method of claim 37, wherein the encoding comprisesgenerating a DTS and a PTS for both coded frames and inserted encodedisolated fields.
 45. The method of claim 37, wherein the encodingcomprises indicating polarity for inserted encoded isolated fields butnot for encoded frames.
 46. A video encoding system comprising:receiving circuitry operable to receive film material; encodingcircuitry operable to encode received film material as a video with afield polarity and a 3:2 pull-down operation for an interlaced displayformat, wherein the encoding circuitry is operable to insert an encodedisolated field with the field polarity; and transmitting circuitryoperable to transmit the encoded film material over a network.
 47. Thevideo encoder of claim 46, wherein the encoding circuitry is operable toinsert the encoded isolated field between a first frame and a secondframe to achieve 3:2 pull-down for coding the received film material.